Rob Ford backs off from suggestion Sheppard LRT funds could be reallocated to Scarborough subway

The fate of a proposed Scarborough subway hangs in the balance after a raucous council debate that stretched into Tuesday evening, amid fresh concerns over whether the project could jeopardize federal funding for the planned Sheppard LRT.

With no firm subway-funding commitment from Ottawa, Mayor Rob Ford fuelled speculation that $333-million in federal cash set aside for the Sheppard light-rail line could be reallocated, saying the money was for “a Toronto transit project” but “they don’t tell us what project.”

Finance Minister Jim Flaherty’s office later confirmed the mayor’s comments, sending a ripple of outrage across the council floor. Ford ally Denzil Minnan-Wong said this “changes the whole nature of the debate,” while other councillors asked for clarity before the final vote, which is now expected to take place Wednesday.

The outcry prompted Mayor Ford to issue a statement late Tuesday, saying he would not touch the designated Sheppard LRT funds.

“The Bloor-Danforth subway extension will be contingent on securing new federal funding,” he said. “I am fully confident we can work with the federal government to secure new funding… I am not looking to reallocate funding from Sheppard to this project.”

The mayor moved a motion Tuesday to adopt a staff recommendation confirming council’s support for the Scarborough subway, which would extend the Bloor-Danforth line to Sheppard Avenue, replacing the planned Scarborough LRT along that corridor. (The Scarborough LRT is separate from the Sheppard LRT; both lines are part of a tripartite transit agreement among the city, the TTC and regional transit agency Metrolinx.)

While city manager Joe Pennachetti recommended a minimum property-tax increase of 0.5% in 2014 to help fund the subway project — which would also hinge on provincial and federal contributions — Mayor Ford’s motion asks council to investigate “alternative sources of funding” in an effort to keep the tax hike to 0.25%.

“We’re going in the right direction. We have skin in the game,” Mayor Ford said.

But many councillors questioned the feasibility of his numbers, including Mr. Minnan-Wong, who warned the project would likely cost at least $1-billion more than forecast because the TTC had a built-in funding cushion of plus or minus 30%.

“I have never seen the TTC not fall back on a 30% cushion. Most of the time there needs to be a lot more stuffing than that,” said Mr. Minnan-Wong, who moved an unsuccessful motion to defer the subway debate pending further analysis.

“To go forward with this is wrong on so many different levels,” he said. “Fiscal conservatives will have to turn in their membership cards.”

The mayor’s council opponents lined up Tuesday to attack the subway plan, with some acknowledging they may not have the numbers to defeat it. Councillor Josh Matlow accused the mayor of trying to “sabotage” the Scarborough LRT without understanding how it would operate, after Mayor Ford suggested the LRT would “rip out traffic lights” and “tear up your roads”; Mr. Matlow pointed out the project, unlike some other LRTs, would actually run on a grade-separated line.

Other councillors, such as Glenn De Baeremaeker (Scarborough Centre), spoke strongly in favour of the subway proposal.

“Scarborough is not connected to the city of Toronto. We never have been,” Mr. DeBaeremaeker said, noting the new line would spur further development. “If you want us to join the family, you have to allow us to get into the city.”

Councillor Joe Mihevc offered tentative support for the subway plan, moving a motion that would make the project contingent on a federal commitment of at least $418-million and a provincial commitment of at least $1.8-billion, along with a promise that none of the other LRT lines would see their funding jeopardized. If those conditions cannot be met, Mr. Mihevc said, “then I’m out.”